The first thing I saw inside La Plaza de Cultura y Artes on Saturday afternoon was Brenton Wood’s zoot suit, a gray number paired with a black-and- white tie and wide-brimmed fedora. The dapper mannequin gave me some kind of sign (sorry, couldn’t resist) of what was to come. Stage outfits like Little Willie G.’s suit from Thee Midniters, flyers for shows like The Brat at The Vex in 1980, t-shirts repping Quetzal and Slowrider and a vinyl wall with everyone from The Premiers to Tierra to Alice Bag to Thee Sinseers. A Great Day in East L.A.: Celebrando the Eastside Sound is a multi-media exhibition that pulls together various tangents related to more than half a century of East Los Angeles music. It’s a thorough show that’s absolutely essential to see if you’re interested in L.A. music. The exhibition opened in late June at La Plaza de Cultures y Artes, across from Olvera Street, and is on view until August of 2026.
A Great Day in East L.A. interprets the “Eastside sound” in way that’s both broad and cohesive. You have multi-generational bands and artists from East L.A., like Thee Midniters, Los Lobos and Tropa Magica, plus those from nearby neighborhoods and cities, like The Premiers, from San Gabriel, who had a chart hit, “Farmer John,” in 1964 and opened for the Rolling Stones (and the Kinks! and the Zombies!), and The Enchantments, from Lincoln Heights. Then there are artists whose music influenced or is otherwise associated with East L.A., like Brenton Wood, who actually did go to East Los Angeles College, although he grew up in San Pedro and Compton, and Ritchie Valens, who was from the San Fernando Valley, but was very important to what is now known as the Chicano rock movement, which took off in 1960s East L.A.
[Geographical side note: East L.A. is an unincorporated section of Los Angeles county situated between L.A. City and the San Gabriel Valley. Boyle Heights, which is basically next door to East L.A., is in the city of Los Angeles. Nearby, separate L.A. County cities include Montebello, Monterey Park and others.]
East L.A.’s music cred runs deep and encompasses so many different genres. Plus, it’s still home to active music scenes. But, in the overall story of L.A. music history, the largely Latino Eastside communities are frequently overlooked. That there is a whole museum exhibition dedicated to the breadth of music that came out of this region of Los Angeles County is quite significant. It’s particularly significant right now, in the midst of this summer’s ICE siege.
I happened to be at the museum when a tour guided by the curators began and was able to catch some of that. A Great Day in East L.A. is a photography and interview project created by Piero F. Giunti. It was inspired by A Great Day in Harlem, Art Kane’s 1958 photograph that brought together 57 jazz musicians, he told the crowd, and has been in progress for many years. He brought in as co-curators musician Mark Guerrero, who has written extensively on Chicano and East L.A. music, and professor/historian Jorge Leal, who also created a great podcast about rock en Español and political history. The three worked with La Plaza’s curators on the exhibition, which does an excellent job of whittling down a lot of information in a way that makes sense to visitors.
In the show, portraits from the original A Great Day in East L.A. project intertwine with the artifacts to tell a non-linear story. Instead of arranging the materials chronologically, they’re grouped together by subject. One gallery is called El Rockero Store and is an homage to the Eastside’s indie record stores, where one could find rock and punk records as well as rancheras and corridos, all of which contribute to the eclectic sound of the region. Here, you’ll see vinyl here alongside display cases filled with flyers, music magazines, pins and stickers.
Another gallery is dedicated to the garage, as in the spaces at home where bands practice, record demos and throw DIY shows. The Radio Rebelde section connects music and politics, from the Chicano Movement of the 1960s and 1970s to 21st century movements against gentrification and for immigration rights.
The exhibition isn’t massive in terms of space, but it’s packed with items, so there really are a lot of small details that I probably didn’t catch on my first visit to A Great Day in East L.A. I’ll definitely be heading to La Plaza de Cultura y Artes to check it out again, though, and suggest you visit the museum too. There are a two free concerts coming up at the museum to coincide with the exhibition: Tropa Magica, Buyepongo and La Junta on August 23 and Tierra and Mark Guerrero on September 6.
Subscribe to the free, weekly Beatique newsletter.
Listen to Beatique Mix May 2025 feat. music from Boy Harsher, Sextile, Pixel Grip and more.
Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Read her recently published work and check out her upcoming gigs or listen to the latest Beatique Mix. Follow on Instagram or Bluesky for more updates.
Keep Reading:
Tropa Magica Cover The Doors “People Are Strange” on New Album
N8NOFACE and Chico Mann Update a Classic Alternative Sound on As of Right Now